Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) PT Raised to $275.00

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) had its target price lifted by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the health services provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 18.54% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Universal Health Services from $236.00 to $274.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Baird R W upgraded Universal Health Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. KeyCorp started coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $219.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Universal Health Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.31.

Universal Health Services Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE UHS traded down $1.64 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $231.98. The stock had a trading volume of 131,609 shares, compared to its average volume of 662,971. The company has a market capitalization of $15.53 billion, a PE ratio of 19.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $229.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $199.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.28. Universal Health Services has a 12 month low of $119.90 and a 12 month high of $243.25.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The health services provider reported $4.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.37 by $0.94. The firm had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.87 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 6.22%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.53 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Universal Health Services will post 15.87 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the health services provider to repurchase up to 8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.64, for a total transaction of $749,552.16. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $864,248.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Universal Health Services news, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.64, for a total value of $749,552.16. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $864,248.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Matthew Jay Peterson sold 15,141 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.85, for a total value of $3,192,479.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,107,595.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 21,970 shares of company stock valued at $4,653,535. 16.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in Universal Health Services by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,160 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $215,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 386 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 624 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 283 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 2,455 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $448,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Universal Health Services

Universal Health Services, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates acute care hospitals, and outpatient and behavioral health care facilities. It operates through Acute Care Hospital Services and Behavioral Health Care Services segments. The company's hospitals offer general and specialty surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics, emergency room care, radiology, oncology, diagnostic and coronary care, pediatric services, pharmacy services, and/or behavioral health services.